This is a family friendly blog for those who love dolls and toys. The blog is a forum for all apsects of doll history, doll collecting, and doll making. It is the first step in creating a nonprofit doll center to educate the public about the historical role that dolls, the oldest human cultural artifact, play in the the lives of people all over the world. All excerpts are the author's intellectual property and may not be reproduced in any means withoutreceiving permission from the author.

My husband led me to a fantastic Victorian doll house yesterday. After we chatted with a great couple who built it, we came home with VanV...

Sand Baby Castaways

Courtesy, Glenda Rolle the Artist

PM Dolls

Leo Moss

German Dolls

Formerly, Aunt Len's.

Beecher Doll

Graces cover of Lenon Hoyte Auction, Aunt Len's

Foreign Dolls

Pryor Collection

Pryor Doll Collection

In Dec. 1959 Natl. Geographic

Great Book

Edward VI's Doll, 1540

Formerly, Helen Moe Doll Museum

Rare "frozen metal doll" Mannikin Pis

Courtesy, eBay Eilleen, Finder 27

Vintage Japanese Doll Joins our Museum Family

Courtesy, Southern Soldier Antiques

Rare Frozen Charlotte Type

A Pageant of Dolls

By Lesley Gordon, 1948

Hong Kong Lili

Barbie Stamp

An early Vintage Barbie

Bild Lili

Zinc Bodied Rohmer

Caused a suit between Mme. Rohmer and Mlle. Huret

Metal Dydee Baby

17th century Lead Dolls

England

Doll Shaped Mold

cf Dolls and Puppets by von Boehn

Metal Head

Probably Minerva

Black Metal Head

Russian Nesting Doll Charm

18 inch Metal Head

Mlle Bleuette

14th C Munich Clay Doll

Used as Bapitsmal Gifts

Halopeau artists rendering

Toy maker

Restored dolls

L to R: All vinyl mid-60s, Ragggedy Ann, handmade, new arms and clothes, Barbie Type as Elizabeth Short, The Black Dahlia. Black Felt Dress, white silk flowers and ribbons. She is in one piece, but with a swivel waist that does snap in two!

About Me

Sunday, April 1, 2012

An Experience from the 80s when I bought my first Compo Bye-Lo

CHAPTER ____
THE DOLL MAN OF PEORIA

The crowds were even larger than anyone had expected that day. The weather must have had a lot to do with it. Rain seemed to dampen people's enthusiasm, while sunshine, like that day's bright sky and warm glow, seemed to call people outside from their homes.

I was looking forward to this particular doll show. I had only been to one like it once before, three years earlier, but I remembered the large variety of dolls available, and the wide-open display areas that allowed everyone to browse in comfort. I had had fantastic luck before at large shows like this, finding dolls in either mint or near-mint condition for veyr low prices, or antiques bargain-pricedd because they needed repairs.

Men at doll shows were nothing new to me. I had gotten used to seeing them as both dealers and collectors. In self-defense, when some Barbarain would accuse me of having a babyish hobby, I sued to rattle off a list of famous men who collected dolls. Still, I wasn't quite prepared for the man who sold me my first Bye-Lo baby.

Before I get too much into the story, I should state that the Bye-Lo was designed by an American atist named Grace Storey Putnam. She was a sculptor who had made and designed other dolls, including "Peter Pan" and "Helen Pan" (Young 113). After looking for a model for some time, she found her inspiration in a three day old infant at the Salvation Army. She modeled a clay head, then made plaster mold (113). From this, she made a live-sized wax copy, and these wax Bye-Los are the rarest of all. When she was ready to market the dolll, she came into contact with George Borgfeldt, who distributed other popular dolls by the German firm of J. D. Kestner. In fact, Kestner contracted to make Rose O' Neill's kewpies. Putnam and Borgfeldt entered into a ten year contract (113). As the say, the rest is history. The doll was made in ten sizes, seven inches to life sized, and was very popular, so much so that it was called "The Million Dollar Baby." Borgfeldt promtoed composition babies in around 1934 becaues it became too expensive to make the doll of bisque (114). In the early 1970's, Shackman reproduced the doll in various sizes and materials, and Horseman put out a vinyl doll called by the same name, though it does not resemble the original Bye-Lo very much.

Now that we've had our history lesson, it's time to return to the Peoria doll show. I made three or four trips to the display table where I first found the Bye-Lo. The display consisted of three tables covered with all kinds of dolls, some in various stages of disrepairm others just dirty and forlor from spending too much time in forgotten attics and boxes. My arms were already full of packages and bags by the time I noticed the baby doll. She was lying on a table in a very old, torn, almost gray baby gown. She was a later Bye-lo, with composition head and painted bisque hands. She had the typical frog body, now gray and stained with age. The price taped to her clothes was $20.00. I had noticed the doll on my first trip around, and kept looking at her. Twenty-dollars certainly wasnt' a fortune, and it was a steal for a Bye-Lo; still I had spent at least five times that already. My full shopping bags were testament to that!l My other proplbem was that I needed reassurance that the dolls was soemwhat genuine. The two girls working the display table knew nothing about dolls. I got permission to take the doll to several other dealers to as their opinions, but they knew nothing. the last woman I asked finally tookt he time to give my baby, for I had already come to think of the doll as mine, a close scrutiny. She convinced me that I should buy the doll. By then, the owner of the doll appeared. He was a typical, middle-aged man, graying hair, jeans, green and white plaid shirt. "This one's from my shelf," he said, and added, "We both have very good taste." He wrapped the doll and took my money. His last words as he handed me the bundle were to the doll, "don't worry; you're going ot a good home."

And, he was right. Baby has gone to a good home. Her once dingy gown is white and carefully lmended. Shw wears a hand-knit pink, baby sweater with matching booties and shares a place wtih several antique bisque dolls and china heads. As my price guides indicate, she is well worth the $20.00.

I always knew Grace Storey Putnam was the mother of the Bye-Lo Baby, but I never realized its father was a Peoria man in a a green and white shirt with salt and pepper hair.